AAP govt in Punjab completes one year, CM Mann promises to turn state into ‘Rangla Punjab’

PTI, Mar 16, 2023, 12:38 PM IST

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Thursday listed out the achievements of the AAP government on its first anniversary and promised to accelerate the state’s progress to turn it into ‘Rangla Punjab’.

He spoke about his government fulfilling the AAP’s guarantees of giving 300 units of free electricity per month, government jobs for the youth, and opening of mohalla clinics, among others. ”The AAP government, which was elected with expectations and big hopes, completed one year in office. Punjabis created history by giving a huge mandate to the AAP one year ago,” he said.

In the 2022 Punjab Assembly election, the Aam Aadmi Party won 92 of 117 seats.

”Within one year, we gave 26,797 government jobs,” Mann said, adding that 87 per cent of households in the state got zero electricity bills.

The chief minister also said that a decision to regularise the services of 14,000 temporary employees in the education department and 14,000 in other departments has been taken.

Services of outsourced employees will also be regularised after removing ”legal hurdles”, he said.

On the agriculture front, Mann said his government gave MSP on ‘moong’ crop and Rs 1,500 per acre for promoting direct seeding of rice and also cleared sugarcane dues of Rs 392 crore.

More than 500 mohalla clinics have been opened in Punjab and 12 to 15 lakh people have availed healthcare services at these facilities, he said and termed it his government’s ”big achievement”.

He further said the AAP government in Punjab will start Schools of Eminence for students.

Mann also spoke about the sacrilege and accused the previous governments of doing nothing to ensure justice in the matter. He said that his party had promised to deliver justice in cases related to the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib.

Referring to the 2015 Kotkapura police firing incident, he said a 7,000-page chargesheet and there was no ”political interference” in the probe carried out by the Punjab Police special investigation team.

”Since we did so much work in the first year, we will now shift to the second gear of progress. Big industrialists are keen to invest in Punjab, they will set up their units and it will create jobs,” the chief minister said.

”Our motive is not (to form) the next government… Generally, parties start looking at how their next government will be formed… we are saying people have made the government. Our priority is to take our next generation forward and raise the standard of living of the poor,” he said.

Asserting that his government was working towards turning the state into a ‘Rangla (vibrant) Punjab’, Mann said, ”If you have shown faith in me and then keep the faith. I will never break your faith.” The chief minister said that his government will start a ”very big campaign” against drugs.

Asserting that his government has zero tolerance towards corruption, claimed that his government took strict action in graft cases. Many former ministers are in jail and action has been taken not only against influential people but also against those who belonged to the ruling AAP, Mann added.

The AAP was born out of an anti-corruption movement, he said.